Cresco Man Sentenced To More Than Seven Years in Prison for Possession of Homemade Bomb

A man who possessed a homemade bomb was sentenced today to more than seven years in federal prison.

Bjorn Luster, age 34, from Cresco, Iowa, received the prison term after a September 19, 2013, guilty plea to one count of possession of an unregistered firearm, a destructive device.

The evidence in the case showed that during the execution of a search warrant at Luster’s residence in January 2013, law enforcement officers found a destructive device, specifically, a homemade bomb and a container of explosive powder. Luster admitted that he made the bomb and that he wrapped it with shrapnel (BBs and nails) to make it more destructive.

Luster was sentenced in Cedar Rapids by United States District Court Chief Judge Linda R. Reade. Luster was sentenced to 87 months’ imprisonment. A special assessment of $100 was imposed. He must also serve a three-year term of supervised release after the prison term. There is no parole in the federal system.

Luster is being held in the United States Marshal’s custody until he can be transported to a federal prison.

The case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Neighborhoods, a cooperative local, state and federal program aimed at the enhanced prosecution of gun crimes. The case was prosecuted by Assistant United States Attorney Daniel C. Tvedt and was investigated by the Cresco, Iowa, Police Department, the Iowa Division of Narcotics Enforcement, and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms.